Over the weekend, you might have seen some reports that Queen‘s manager said that Sacha Baron Cohen had returned to the Freddie Mercury biopic, and that he would not only star in the film, but that he would write, direct, and produce the movie. This was a huge surprise, since Brian May and the other surviving members of Queen had nixed the Cohen-starring version of the film quite a while ago.

And that’s the way it remains. Queen’s manager did say something about Sacha Baron Cohen returning to the film, but his statement was a joke — a joke that became news thanks to an incomplete transcription. Read More »

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Sadly, the Freddie Mercury biopic gets a little less promising with each development step. The long-standing assumption was that Sacha Baron Cohen would play the late Queen frontman based on a script by Peter Morgan, with the surviving members of the band (Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon) acting as producers. The band is still on board, but Cohen is gone, reportedly because he wanted to make a wild, R-rated tell-all film, while the band wants something a little more sanitized.

Enter Ben Whishaw (Skyfall, Cloud Atlas), who will likely be a fine performer to take on the role. And now a director has finally been found: actor turned director Dexter Fletcher (who played roles in Misfits, Stardust, and Kick-Ass) has been signed to make the film as his third directorial effort. Read More »

Sacha Baron Cohen dropped out of the long-gestating Freddie Mercury biopic this summer when he and the remaining members of Queen couldn’t come to an agreement over the film’s tone. The role has remained unfilled since then, but drummer Roger Taylor has now revealed that they already have someone in mind: Ben Whishaw. More details on the possible casting after the jump.

Your reaction to this story will be directly related to how you feel about comedian/actor Sacha Baron Cohen, who for a couple years has been attached to play late Queen singer Freddie Mercury in a film about the band. Deadline reports that Cohen has pulled out of the pic because he can’t come to an agreement with the surviving members of Queen (who are also producing) about the tone of the film. Read More »

Every once in a while we get an update on the planned biopic of late Queen frontman and consummate showman Freddie Mercury. For quite a while Borat star and Hugo supporting actor Sacha Baron Cohen has been set to play the mustachioed singer, but beyond that we’ve heard fairly little.

But founding and current Queen guitarist Brian May says the film is still moving forward. There’s been a delay, and so contrary to previous reports shooting is now planned for spring 2013 with a release to follow in 2014, but the thing is still happening. Read More »

As Sacha Baron Cohen‘s new comedy The Dictator strolls towards theaters, I know some have been wondering if his plan to play late Queen singer Freddie Mercury remains intact. As it turns out, that plan has not changed, and now Stephen Frears (High Fidelity) is the frontrunner to direct the film that has the backing of remaining Queen members Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon. Read More »

Here’s some news that could be eerily on point: Peter Morgan, the guy who wrote The Queen, is now going to write about the band Queen. (That’s not the on-point part, but it is a good factor.) More specifically, he’s writing an as yet unnamed biopic of Queen singer Freddie Mercury. Even better: to play Mercury, the production has just signed Sacha Baron Cohen. Raise those lighters and sing along with Sacha. Read More »

This morning, The Muppets released a high definition viral parody of Queen’s classic song “Bohemian Rhapsody“. The video, which features over 40 Muppet characters, coincides with the release of Queen’s new album. If you haven’t seen the video yet (its been spreading rapidly around the interwebs all morning), click after the jump.